4 New Technologies that are Making the World a Safer Place

Technology has its downside, but there's no doubt that it's provided some powerful tools to make your life easier and more rewarding. Even 10 short years ago the technology in the world was remarkably different than it is today. Classic Ipods, internet explorer, and flip phones with 2 megapixel camera's were still the norm, just to name a few. This wonderful technology is also the basis for the amazing progress you can expect 20 years from now. Aside from all of the convenience and entertainment value it provides, one of the chief benefits of technology is that it makes the world around you safer. Thanks to a few recent advances, we're looking at a tomorrow that's safer than ever before. What follows are just four of the advanced modern technologies that are helping to ensure a safer future.

Gun Locks

Whatever your stance on gun control, guns are definitely something that are connected with America. Firearms of various sorts can be found in a variety of contexts all across the country. Even though many gun owners are conscious of the potential risks involved with owning a weapon, accidents still happen. Sadly, when an accident happens with a gun it usually involves the loss of someone's life. For this reason, a very large percentage of the American population has been calling for an increase in safety measures surrounding firearms. Gun makers have responded to the demand for greater gun safety by creating bio-metric locking devices that recognize only the gun owner. These can be affixed to the barrel, trigger, or built into the weapon itself. Attaching a lock of this type makes your gun inoperable to anyone else, effectively eliminating the possibility of an accidental discharge. While most guns today don't have a lock like this, as our technological prowess continues to advance it isn't unreasonable to expect them to become much more common in the near future.

Medical Diagnostics

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Modern radiology has revolutionized patient care, leading to better patient diagnoses and more effective treatments. MRIs, x-rays, and new solutions like Computed Tomography (CT) provide doctors the ability to see inside your body with greater detail and accuracy. This helps to prevent unnecessary or exploratory surgeries. They can now immediately identify and target the exact source of your problem, whether it's a digestive blockage or a malignant tumor. Along with changes in the diagnostics of the medical field come changes in medical laws. Healthcare law professionals today are continuing to innovate and drive change to benefit consumers and constantly improving ways.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

GIS is a technology that combines GPS positioning with computerized mapping software. The result is computer models that process large amounts of data to give a very precise model of land features and topography. That sounds pretty technical, and it is, but the application for this technology is remarkably useful. Creating an almost exact digital replication of an area provides you with an easy way to gauge the potential impact of natural disasters.This could be used to the exact locations and extent of damage for various scenarios scenarios such as flooding, earthquakes, and even extreme storms. The analysis of a model like this is indispensable in creating contingency plans to help cities and communities prepare for an emergency long before it happens. It's not hard to imagine how knowing the exact path floodwaters would take would make planning an evacuation easier. Unlike bio-metric gun locks, this particular technology is already more accessible than you might think. Time will only improve our abilities to prepare for and prevent natural disasters.

Driverless vehicles

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The technology behind autonomous vehicles is much closer to being mainstream than you may think. Successful tests have been carried out in several places in the US, especially California, as well as in Europe, Russia, and China. An array of sensors and cameras allows the on-board computer to get a complete picture of the vehicle's surroundings. The car can see more, and respond faster, than the average human can. This is expected to dramatically reduce your risk of traffic accidents.

There will always be hackers and other criminals finding ways to make technology work for their own selfish purposes. But technological advances altogether are steadily improving your outlook for the future.

Share Your Thoughts!

Which new safety technology do you think has the most potential to save lives?